Psychedelicatessen: Lifted Lemon Ginger Tarts

Welcome to Psychedelicatessen, a weekly column exploring the world of cannabis cuisine, including recipes from the great chefs and ganjapreneurs who fuel our appetite for adventure.

Cannabis is a health-positive substance, a healing herb straight from the earth. Doesn’t it deserve to be paired with whole fruits and nuts, raw foods bursting with flavor and nutrients, creating a healing synergy that leaves you energetic and contented? That’s the thinking behind Lifted Edibles, a small company based out of Felton, California. “We started out with cannabis-infused potato chips,” says master chef Angela Evans with a laugh, “but then I went on a health kick!”

Lifted creates all organic, vegan edibles infused with cold-water hash for a pure high that even the most enlightened yogi could appreciate. “We wanted to use cannabis as a way to promote a healthier lifestyle,” says marketing director Matthew, “and we don’t sacrifice taste for healthiness.”

In fact, while the movement for healthy, local, organic food grows daily, many dispensary owners are reluctant to stock health-positive cannabis-infused foods for fear that customers only want to chow down on comfort foods laden with butter and sugar. Not so, says Matt. “When I do sales calls, I constantly run into young women who are our most enthusiastic customers.” There’s a market for pure, raw cannabis foods out there, and Lifted is tapping into it.

“There’s prejudice against so-called ‘health foods,’” Matthew says, “people hear ‘vegan’ and they think it’s gonna taste bad, and they hear ‘organic’ and they think it’s gonna be too expensive,” but the crew is overcoming the stigma created by well-meaning but poorly executed health food items by focusing on quality ingredients and Angela’s simple but sophisticated recipes.

Lifted superfood cannabis balls come in seven flavors, and all are composed of organic dried fruits and nuts, delivering fiber and protein along with hash-infused coconut oil. Choose from the Ginger Bite, Peach Banana Bite, Superfood Brownie Bite, Pineapple Delight Bite, Blueberry Bite or the brand-new Cherry Crunch Bite, containing dried cherries, goji berries, coconut, mango, papaya and dehydrated mulberries — dosed with 100 milligrams of THC. The balls are moist, sweet and packed with fruity flavors that tantalize the taste buds. Angela’s unmedicated samples of the Pineapple Delight balls were instantly devoured! “For the people turned off by the vegan, organic label, the breakthrough comes when you try it and it makes your body feel its best,” Matt says, “I’ve had people come up to me and say ‘Wow, finally something I can eat!’”

Angela created a delectable raw tart using a Lifted Bite to dose the crust. Cutting one 100mg Bite into four pieces ensured that each tart would contain 25 milligrams of THC, making at-home dosage easy as pie! For those without access to Lifted Edibles for use as ingredients, we’ve included an alternative way to dose your healthy, fresh ganja treats. Using blended avocado, lemon and banana to fill a crust of ground nuts and dried fruits makes for a refreshing summertime tart that won’t pack on the pounds!

First, grind your almonds in a food processor until you have very finely chopped nuts. Add the cranberries, grated ginger, chopped dates, salt and process until very well combined. Empty the processor bowl and reserve the crust mixture, you should have about 1 cup.

Cut the Lifted bite into 4 even quarters. Take 1/4 cup of the crust mixture and return to the food processor along with one quarter of the Lifted bite, and process until well combined. (This step ensures that your 25mg dose from the Lifted Bite goes into one tart.)

Cover your tart pan with a small piece of plastic wrap, this will prevent the crust from sticking and helps with the finished presentation. Pour the crust into the pan and cover with another sheet of plastic. Use a second tart pan to press the crust evenly into the bottom. Use your fingers through the plastic to press the crust up the edges of the pan. Repeat this step for each of the four tart pans. Place your crust into the fridge while you create the filling.

In a high-powered blender (such as a Vitamix), or a food processor, combine the lemon juice, zest, avocado, coconut oil, papaya, banana and salt, blending until thick and creamy. Transfer filling to a plastic bag and cut off the corner; use this to pipe your filling into the tart crusts. Alternatively, you can spoon filling into each shell, smoothing the tops.

Place your tarts into an airtight container and freeze for at least 20 minutes or ideally overnight. This step allows the filling to set and flavors to meld.